1 in 5 UK Teens Have Felt Suicidal, Male Suicide Rates Climb.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) in the United Kingdom released their 2018 suicide report, revealing a dramatic increase in suicides last year – the highest rates since 2002.

Suicide rates had been on the decline since 2013. Yet there were 6,507 suicides registered in 2018 compared with 5,821 in 2017 – an 11.8 per cent increase.

While the general female suicide rate rose, ONS determined the rise to be comparable to previous years at 5.4 deaths per 100,000 people. The rise in female under-25 suicides is considerable:

“Despite having a low number of deaths overall, rates among the under 25s have generally increased in recent years, particularly 10 to 24-year-old females where the rate has increased significantly since 2012 to its highest level with 3.3 deaths per 100,000 females in 2018.”

Nonetheless it appears as though the overall rise in suicides is predominantly driven by men.

Males comprise three quarters of the deaths (4,903 of the 6,507 suicides). The male rate has jumped from 15.5 per 100,000 in 2017 to 17.2 per 100,000 in 2018.

This week, 10 million children are going #Back2School. Over half of them will experience bullying.